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Belle Bennett | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Bennett in 1923 | |
| Born | Ara Belle Bennett (1891-04-22)April 22, 1891 |
| Died | November 4, 1932(1932-11-04) (aged 41) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Resting place | Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1909–1931 |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 3 |
Ara Belle Bennett (April 22, 1891 – November 4, 1932) was a stage and screen actress who started her career as a child as a circus performer. She later performed in theater and films.
Bennett was born inMilaca, Minnesota, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. B. Bennett. Her father, "Billie," managed a tent-and-wagon show that toured theMidwestern United States.[1][2]
Bennett was working as a film actress by 1913, and she was cast in numerous one-reel shorts by small east coast film companies. She appeared in minor movies likeA Ticket to Red Horse Gulch (Mutual 1914). She starred in several full-length films by theTriangle Film Corporation, includingThe Lonely Woman (1918). She also appeared inUnited States Motion Picture Corporation's filmFlesh and Spirit (1922).
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She made the move to Hollywood beforeSamuel Goldwyn selected her from 73 actresses for the leading role inStella Dallas (1925). While she was filming the movie, her son, 16-year-old William Howard Macy, died. Macy had posed as Bennett's brother for some time, owing to her fear that her employers might find out her true age. She was actually 34 rather than 24, which she had claimed to be. Because of the loss of her son, Bennett became close to her co-stars Lois Moran and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., who were also 16 at the time.[3]
After playing the mother role inStella Dallas, Bennett was typecast for the remainder of her film career. She later appeared inMother Machree (1928),The Battle of the Sexes (1928),The Iron Mask (1929),Courage (1930),Recaptured Love (1930) andThe Big Shot (1931).[1]
Bennett was married three times. Her first husband was Howard Ralph Macy of La Crosse, Wisconsin. They had a son together, William Howard Macy.[citation needed] After Billy's death, she adopted at least one other child, Theodore Macy, who was 22 when she died.[1][4]
Jack Oaker, a sailor at the submarine base in San Pedro, California, was married to her when she worked with theTriangle Film Corporation in 1918.[citation needed]
On November 27, 1924, she married film directorFred Windemere,[5] and she remained with him until her death.[1][4]
Bennett died on November 4, 1932, in Hollywood, California. Her attending physician registered her cause of death as generalcarcinomatosis.[1]
Bennett posthumously was inducted into theHollywood Walk of Fame during the initial ceremonies in 1960. She received amotion pictures star, located at 1511 Vine Street.[6]
